A Toast to the Lessons not yet Learned
by Itinerant Poet
Summary: Rachel finds herself attracted to someone she thought was not her type...


"A toast to the lessons not yet learned"

A glee story

Pairing: Cassandra/Rachel

Rating: R

Chapter: 1 of 2

Author: ItinerantPoet

The shock from Cassandra's surprise, a dedication that she actually cared, sent fire burning through her veins, a nervous energy had built as she prepared herself for another berating turned into a fizz, running to every part of her body. The smile that flashed across Cassandra's face as she started to sing to her sent a bolt of heat to her stomach, and if she allowed herself to think about it, even lower to the very depth of her core.

Holding back as the class danced around her, she took everything in, watching people she had spent the year competing with, somehow were now cheering her on, the sparkles and glitter of the signs pushed aside as the joy of the dance filled the student's souls. It was Cassandra that stood out though, pulling her attention as she flitted from dancer to dancer, her hair cascading across her face, the flick of her head sending it flowing, a river of golden joy that Rachel, for a split second, wished she could run her hands through.

She stayed on the outskirts, smiling and singing with her class mates, avoiding making contact with Cassandra, worried that the smile she has fixed across her face would falter if presented with that body close up, those abs had been part of her guilty dreams for too long now, after the mess of Brody. If anyone asked she would confirm she was daydreaming about a random boy that Kurt or Santana didn't know, but for the past few months her FEMALE tutor had been the subject of some very dirty moments. She prided herself in her acting, and so far she'd been able to feign interest in any boy who looked like she should like them. If she thought about it, the revelation of Quinn and Santana hooking up at the non-wedding had been a surprise, for a short while she had even felt the burn of jealousy at the thought of Santana claiming Quinn's only experiment with women. That had passed, as had the distraction of Santana as a potential mate, that hadn't lasted long but it was enough for her interest to be piqued in the idea of dating a woman. The more she thought about it the more her mind just went back to Miss July, she knew that it was a wasted dream, but it was harmless to her, a way of experimenting with her sexuality without the worry that came with a real person.

Lost in a daydream, she let herself be swirled by dancers in to the middle of the group, and before she could stop it, soft small hands replaced larger masculine ones and she found herself being pulled in to a dance with her day dream companion. She fixed a smile on her face and laughed as they danced together, singing along to the song, she felt the buzz as their skin connected, hyper aware of how her heart beat was pulsing away. Before she could pass out from the stress she was swirled into another move, her hand released from Cassandra's and she immediately felt something missing, the warmth and energy gone.

For a moment she lost her in the crowds, the class swarming around her, pulling her into a dance then releasing her, swirling into the heady mix of friendship and NYADA. As she paused and looked up, eyes burnt into her own as she met Cassandra's gaze. On her way out of the room she had paused and glanced back, her eyes roaming over Rachel's body as she had been dancing. A smile graced her lips as she realized she had been caught, but she didn't look ashamed, only proud. A new emotion on her face that for a moment Rachel didn't recognize, she'd spent so much of the year trying to decipher all the anger and fixed gazes so that finally seeing something more on that face confused her.

As she watched Cassandra leave she let herself get caught in the group again, just for seconds in reality but the time ticked slower and slower. Something pulled at her, a tug on her imaginary sleeve that wouldn't stop, rather than push it down as something to ignore, as she would normally do around anything to do with Cassandra, she let the feeling guide her. Within seconds she was at the door, gripping on to the door frame and up on the balls of her feet, allowing her body to remain in the room as her eyes looked down the hallway to follow the tap tap tap of Cassandra's footsteps.

Glancing back into the room she noticed that the group and merged together, some now sat down talking, some resting against the barre, allowing their bodies to flex and stretch, an automatic reaction to being in the dance studio.

Rather than be pulled back into the room, and the group she turned, pushing her body off the doorframe, her click click click heels echoing down the hallway in pursuit of Cassandra.

Thinking over the last few minutes Rachel tried to read any of the signals and signs that would have prompted her to think this was a good idea, she wasn't even sure why she was following Cassandra down the hall. Her mind seemed to go back to the incredible abs every time, whatever Miss July has been wearing was now burned onto her brain and the increase in her heart rate at the mere thought of it was definitely something Rachel hadn't experienced before, even Brody with his sexy man body hadn't elicited this immediate reaction. Lost in her thoughts Rachel felt her body collide with something, and before she could catch herself she was sprawled across the corridor, gracefully colliding with the wall, halting her body against the cool concrete, its contract against her flush skin a welcome relief.

"Schwimmer, really?" Was all Cassandra could offer.

"I, urm, sorry…?" Rachel said, letting her eyes drag slowly, and purposefully, albeit a little bashfully, up the legs of her teacher, coveting those distracting abs before reaching those eyes.

Cassandra laughed, the smile setting of a cascade of sparkles in her eyes as she offered her hand to Rachel to pull herself up.

"Shouldn't you still be dancing with your classmates?" Cassandra suggested once Rachel was upright.

"I was looking for you, actually" she responded.

"Well, despite the rather aggressive way you announced that you were there, you have found me, what did you want?" The words sounded aggressive, but the tone Cassandra used was friendly, and the smile hadn't left her face. This wasn't the Cassandra that Rachel was used to talking too, and she needed a moment to gather her thoughts.

"Schwimmer?"

"Yes, sorry, I wanted to thank you, properly, I mean, for busting my ass all year to get me to this point, and for the song in there, it meant a lot to have your support." Rachel offered, failing to meet her teacher's eyes during the whole speech.

"We do it for everyone, but," Cassandra pulled Rachel's chin up so they made eye contact, "You are welcome Rachel." She smiled and let her fingers slowly drop, catching Rachel's arm in the process and setting off fireworks of goose bumps across her skin.

"And as a side note, it's very fine ass to bust" Cassandra smirked, turning as she said it to continue down the hall, pushing through the final doors, turning for a moment to see the blush that had risen across Rachel's body reach her face.

"Urm." Was all Rachel managed to mutter, long after Cassandra had left the building, she stood there, a pulsing burn of desire centered firmly at her core.

"Fuck" was all that followed, she had hoped that she could keep these feelings in check, after all Rachel Berry was very very straight. Unfortunately her body was telling herself something very very different, and she wondered if she would even make it home with the sheer desire burning through her veins.


End file.
